Broken Nostalgia
by HakuoBlake
Summary: Gift Fic. A jutsu gone wrong. The understanding of the horrors that the brightest one of them face daily. Team 7 stripped down to their core and exposed to each other. What will be salvaged?Hints of SasuSakuNaru
1. Chapter 1

**This is a gift fic for a friend -You know who you are. Myself and her have always like to read those fics where it shows how strong Naruto's will is even though he's treated the worst.**

**Warnings: Sakura bashing, AU, ooc-ness, things in character's past that didn't happen and random hints as to kakashi's state of sanity.**

**BrOkEn NoStAlGiA by HakuoBlake**

"Okay guys, get in a circle."

Sakura seemed skeptical, "Kakashi-sensei, what is this jutsu suppose to do again?" She got the eye-smile...and a peace sign. She backed away from the jounin, _'They do say the geniuses go crazy first...' _she reasoned with herself.

Naruto was looking on the horizon, his eyes half opened a strange weariness surounding him, settling around his shoulders like a heavy blanket. His mouth was a slight frown, his eyebrows furrowed. To Sasuke he seemed more like an old man than the Saindaime did, and that made him strangly angry. So he slapped him upside the head.

"Arrgh, BASTARD. The fuck is your problem?" the blond asked, half the decibel of his usual shout of outrage, Sasuke was sure something important was bugging him to be this quiet. He scoffed.

"You're my problem" _The way you act is not helping my nerves..._

The far away look came over his eyes again and he softly sighed, "I see..." He was then knocked to the floor, "NARUTO-NO-BAKA!!! What are you doing yelling at Sasuke-kun? Can't you see today in stressful for him?" She took a simpering look towards Sasuke, "Right Sasuke-kun?"

The last Uchiha looked away, today was the anniversay of his clans slaughter and he freakin' needed Naruto's annoying but overly positive attitude to brighten his day.

That's the only reason he came back after all. He didn't come back for Sakura even though she daydreamed about that, not even for Kakashi's belief that he wanted to continue his studies under another Sharingan user.

No.

What he came back for was those stupid idiotic comments and actions from Naruto, who treated him with rivalry for who he was: a normal gennin who trained hard to achieve his status NOT just because he was the only survivor of the famed Uchiha clan.

Sakura rounded on Naruto as Sasuke continued to ignore her, "Don't you have some FEELINGS?! Stop with your stupid rivalry with Sasuke-kun for once 'cause you'll never beat him anyway! You probably don't understand what he's going through anyway, you don't know the extent of his pain..." she huffed, making Sasuke look like a depressed person who needed love from his female teamate, she got angry as naruto did nothing but look at a dandelion that was right in front of his nose, Kakashi was dutifully ignoring and waiting for Sakura to stop shouting otherwise they would never move on to the super cool jutsu that he had planned for all three of them.

"It's because he's an Uchiha and you're a NOBODY don't you get it?!" Sakura continued, until a hard hand clamped down on her shoulder, almost hurting because of the force. Sasuke's eyes were cold, the Sharingan spinning wildly, the red a sharp reminder of blood. "Sakura, shut up. Now" She had gone too far, with him in hearing range.

He directed her towards Kakashi, almost pushing her out of the way as Kakashi began telling her about the handseals involved.Sasuke knelt down and scooped up the blonde, frowning at the limpness of the usual ball of energy.

"C'mon." was all he said and he dusted his teamate and accompanied him to where their sensei was repeating the handseals involved.

-

Naruto was down.

That made Sasuke irritated, it was like not having a dose of something sweet everyday.

"-and remember, your emotions have to be veeerryyy calm to work." Kakashi finished explaining. " Ready, steady GO!" All of team 7 did the handseals and melded their chakra together, Naruto's vehemntly refusing to go near Sakura's chakra, that's why his went in between Sasuke's slightly darker chakra and Kakashi's calm soothing one.

But instead of the melding chakra's that it was suppose to show, It turned black and caused them all to fall from the meditating positions they took. All of them pitched forward at the same time, their heads colliding with each other in the middle.

-

They awoke in someplace dark, somehow still being able to see each other clearly. Sakura was last to get up, holding her head in pain. "What happened..." she rasped out. Kakashi looked around and saw the corner where naruto sat calmly, looking away from them and peering into the darkness.

"Well...I guess the jutsu failed," It was suppose to be a linking jutsu, where each of them meditated and got in sync with the others, a beggining tactic in the ANBU to promote flawless teamwork until it became like second nature to them, " I suppose your emotions weren't in check..."

Sakura stood up when they all felt a slight dissapointment surround them the most concentrated source coming from her corner. Sasuke narrowed his eyes, " Sensei, what is _this?_"

"The other part of the jutsu, where we all feel the predominant feelings of your teammates..but as to why we seem to be in corners of a black room...I have no idea." Kakashi answered smiling at the Uchiha, who sweatdropped _'He's crossed the line between genius and insanity alright..'_

Kakashi's green confusion swept past them all, and Sasuke's irritated mood seemed to be as unforgiving as sandpaper on their skin.

Sakura then spotted something she could put the blame on.

Naruto.

Defenseless, and not looking her way.

She stormed over and was about to reach him when a flash of pink and then violent dark red chakra stopped her. she rubbed her forehead, "arg, what was that?"

"You can't move away from your spot too far.."Naruto said finally standing up and dusting himself off; as if to demonstrate that they were in his area of expertese and therefore at his mercy the room reacted to his words and around them they all saw a flash surrounding them like a box. Sasuke's was blue the same as his shirt, Kakashi's was forest green and hers was a deep pink. Kakashi raised an eyebrow.

"And yours Naruto?"

At this Naruto's feeling of light amusement, as if he was merely humoring them filled them. "Mine...is right here.." A dark red chakra outlined his space on the corner where he stood, going to far as to trace the line with red flames that kept Sakura away from the blond.

"We are where no one wants people to be.." Naruto continued secretively; feeling around his walls connecting them to each other as if to determine how far he could step before he was flung back.

Sasuke raised an eyebrow, the soothing color of bright blue eyes calming his nervousness. "Their mind." he completed for the blond.

Naruto looked at him, and nodded his eyes warming so that Sasuke could see a glimpse of the Naruto that no one save Iruka and the Saindaime had seen.

"Psh, don't try to act so cool, baka."

And then a terrible feeling welled up from their own chests, deepening, with its dreadful echo, the terrors (1) acting on their hearts. Causing the organ to skip a beat, then two in its fright to move for fear that, it provoke this gross and violent _loathing_.

"**I suggest Haruno, that you keep your bitchy mouth shut in this space. You might be the so-called 'brightest' one to graduate but in this mental realm, Naruto reigns supreme.**" A voice like blood-dripped velvet spoke to them, around them, and through them simultaniously.

Naruto's head turned.

"Kyuubi-sama." he said, his eyes roaming over to a tall tanned man, with hair that reached his waist, his bangs spread haphazardly over his forehead obscuring some parts of his piercing eyes.

Kakashi gawked, "K-Kyuubi?!"

The blonde and the red head rolled their eyes, switched their weight to one foot and crossed their arms at the same time that it was terrifyingly natural looking for each of them. A sneer widened Naruto's lips that it looked so wrong, yet everyone found that his muscles didn't stretch awkwardly, as if he sneered everyday as much as Sasuke.

"No, its a bright pink bunny." Naruto said in a flat tone, one could almost hear the unsaid '_stupid dumbass.'_ that was on the tip of the blond's tongue. The man grinned sadistically.

**"Yes and no." **Everyone's dumbfounded looks made him bark out a laugh, **"I'm only part of the Kyuubi, I'm the powerful kick-ass Demon Lord instictual predator side. The other is the refined and genteelly side that a demon of our caliber should have from birth. At least she acts like it most of the time."** he muttered the last part, to which Naruto coughed to hide his laughter.

Team 7 was shocked. Speechless. And very severly traumatized.

Sure they knew that their teamate housed Kyuubi. But to house two Kyuubi's?! That was freakin' insane! Naruto turned to the man next to him, "Where's Kyuu-chan?"

**"She wouldn't wake up, I suggest you call her, she'll listen to **_**you,**_** after all..." **he said pouting slightly. Naruto ignored him and looked into one of his "walls" that faced away from Team 7. Taking a deep breath he shouted, "KYUU-CHAN!!!"

They heard a _boom! _and the earth shook beneath them. Those with sensitive hearing heard the tell-tale high pitched whistle of an object coming towards you at 90-something miles per hour.

_Slam!_

Naruto was almost thrown off balance as 120 pounds of full grown kitsune woman slammed into him shouting, "Naru-chaaan!!"

Her hair, which went down to her ankles, was in total dissarray; a jumble of knots and tangles. It was the same shade as Kyuubi-sama's and so were her eyes, only hers were slanted slightly higher and her eyelashes thicker than her male counterpart. And instead of the harsh contours and slants of Kyuubi-sama's face, hers was curved gently and had an aristocratic air about her.

Even in ramen pyjama pants with only an undershirt on.

"What are you doing here Naru-chan?"

"I don't know exactly." naruto replied, his voice muffled by the breasts that his face was being pushed into. Kakashi glared slightly, _'lucky kid..'_

While Kyuu-chan basically interrogated Naruto on why he hadn't shown up earlier, Sasuke felt a sudden urge to laugh insanely at the scene that they were making. Especially when Naruto pouted and said petulantly, "Are those _my _pyjamas?"

The male demon that stood by the blonde went to the middle of the room, done bantering with his host and cotenant (for the moment anyway). He sneered at Sakura making her recoil violently, he had to hold back another onlslaught of maniacal laughter.

"What are you doing?" Kyuu-chan asked the male, arching a delicate eyebrow.

**"I was summoned, and I think I know what's happening."** Kyuubi said, putting a hand to his chest and taking out

a ribbon that was a pure black that shone a vicious red. With one clawed hand he beckoned at the others and from Sakura's chest immediatly sprang forth a white ribbon, slightly gray near the end. The next to submit to the call of the kitsune was Sasuke, his ribbon only partly white, the rest being of a grey or dark grey color. Kakashi's was last, the ribbon a deep black with gray at the beggining.

Kyuubi spinned them around an around until it seemed like a Rasengan composed of ribbons ranging from white deep black, the tails of these ribbons coming from Team 7's chests still. the color changing as it kept coming out.

Finally the wind stopped whipping at their faces, Kyuu-chan's kimono sleeves (for she had changed) had Naruto's face protected. In the middle floated a ball that kept changing in accordance to the black and white spectrum, the ribbons still attatched to the gennin and their jounin instructor, the colors swirling like upset water.

The walls on the outside room changed, like screens, and it showed a blank surface.

Kyuubi-sama rumbled, a throaty chuckle and snapped his fingers so the screens showed a park full of flowers where little girls ran and laughed, their laughter like crystal bubbles; so pure yet delicate.

**"Let's begin, shall we?"**

-owari-

(1)-quote from The Tell-Tale Heart by Edger Allan Poe

Who can guess what the ribbons represent, and their colors as well?

I've been wanting to do this type of fic for Naruto for a while now, i just got inspired. I had to conciously put more descriptive words and sentences in this fic though, or the abrupt change from half assed descriptions in chapter one to super colorful in the rest of the chapters might seem weird.

**Ruby: you are such a bad person...leaving us at a cliffhanger...**

-Smile- JAA NE, review please!


	2. Chapter 2

EDIT 9/20/2010: Changed it so that they are still in their respective boxes. You might want to read it all, made a lot of changes, and made this more Sasuke-centric since Naruto's spotlight is in a bit. Made Sakura kinda salvageable.

**Broken Nostalgia ch. 2**

_"You have such a big forehead. I know, we'll call you Forehead girl!" The leader sneered down at the small whimpering girl. Tears streaked down her face, like soft wisps of glass. Others followed the example and taunted her, throwing mud in her face._

_She didn't like this._

_Why didn't they leave her alone?_

_How could children do this? They are suppose to embody innocence and kindness, this her already intellectual brain concluded. She should have never left her library full of books._

_Books where the hero was like by everyone in the plastic doll reality that the author conjured up._

_As more taunts were directed to her person, she began to wonder, as only children can wonder without the 'common sense' of society. Does your image reflect your status? If she was pretty, would that give her the right to bully the bullies?_

_Before her train off thought could finish its journey it was crashed, or interrupted is more like it._

_"Oi! Leave her alone!" A small body stood in front of her protecting her, shielding. The rest was a blur as Ino matched wits with the leader._

Sakura smiled; a mouth like cold steel, her friend could chew anyone and spit them out like nothing.

_"Hey you okay?" She said helping her up and dusting her off. "You shouldn't let them do that to you." Sakura let her tears fall at her shame, "I-it's because of m-my big f-forehead…"_

_Ino scoffed and too out the ribbon holding her hair back, letting pink locks obscure her vision. "There, just keep your hair long and it'll be okay."_

_Sakura blushed. Why hadn't she thought of that?_

_"okay." she said in a small voice. Ino grabbed her arm and led her to a hill where she and her friends were laughing and playing with flowers. "Oi! Listen up! This here is-what's your name?" she asked sheepishly and Sakura whispered a response," This here's Sakura! She'll be my new friend so come and say hi!"_

_Mild hellos. And then they grew bolder under the supervision of the over-protective Yamanaka. She could remember laughing a lot that day. Learning about her new self appointed 'best friend'._

_She smiled._

"What is this?" Sasuke asked pointing to the ribbon currently in his chest. Kyuubi-sama looked slightly ill at the memory that started to play on the screens so Kyuu-chan answered him.

"It's your memories." she lectured, somehow still cradling the tan blond who looked curiously over at the screen, Sakura kinda made sense now in a scary way." The types of memories that you have are classified with color. For example the white is all the good memories that you've had." As she pointed toward the pink haired kunoichi, whose ribbon was mostly white.

"The gray ones are slightly boring if not depressing recollections," she continued pointing to his ribbon. A thought occurring to him, dread settling in the pit of his stomach as he looked over at Kakashi's ribbon and what he surmised was Naruto's memories coming out of the male Kyuubi." And the black?" he asked dreading the answer.

At that Kyuu-chan's eyes fell to the black ribbon protruding through her male counterpart's chest, her voice hardly rose a whisper, as proven how Kakashi leaned in to hear what she had to say "Black is the memories that keep you up at night, that weight heavily inside you, so you feel the immense burden, with no hope but for seeing the sun tomorrow"

The explanation rang ominously after that, Sakura shivering at the description of the memories coming out of her sensei and the male Kyuubi. Kakashi voiced something, "Where are Naruto's memories?"

The blonde's face blanked out so fast they weren't surprised if he had pulled a muscle. Kyuubi-sama answered, **" He would go insane or would have done like Shukaku's brat and killed anyone he desired or he could just shut down, "**he started to explain, a crease in his brow appearing as he contemplated the last choice,** " To cope with so much his body would just freeze all brain activity so as to gradually get used to it ...and eventually return from a coma like state. Hopefully" **He muttered, Kakashi latched onto that and narrowed his eye, "** so I took his childhood memories, in a way. He could remember one memory if he wished, but to keep his mental state relatively healthy he would forget everything else in his childhood, besides the mundane things."**

_'He makes it out as if Naruto was a borderline mental case...' _mostly everyone thought. Naruto's eye twitched, "Somehow I think I know what you're all thinking..." Everyone looked away.

"How come they took longer to come out than others?"Sakura voiced what she had noticed. "Hmm..Some memories are buried deep in your subconscious, that you ignore them most of the time. Or you try your best to forget that happened."Kyuu-chan explained, looking at Kakashi out of the corner of her eye.

"How do we get out of here?" the silver haired ninja asked, eager to know.

Kyuubi-sama spoke up cryptically, **"We watch and understand our mistakes.."**

_"Kaasan! Tousan!" Sasuke shouted as he arrived at the famed Uchiha complex. He had found it strange that Yon and Kuchiku weren't at their usual spots at the gates. And then his nose was assaulted by the _smell_. _

_It swept so close to him, putrid in its essence as if to fan the young boy with its acrid breath. Rotting and bleeding, his family lay before him. Neighbors, cousins, uncles; none were discriminated if those similar slashes spoke anything. His heart beat frantically as he dropped his backpack and rushed to the door of his own home at the heart of the district. He could hear the moans of the dead and dying, their bodies decomposing even as their blood coated the grass and the foxgloves._

_Throwing open the door he shouted, "TOUSAN!KAASAN!"_

_Blood._

_It was everywhere._

_The chair where he sat to wait for his father. The bed in which the nightmares were quelled. The floor was already gaining the rich red color as it greedily soaked it up. His feet were drenched already, tainting him. Whoever this murderer was, Sasuke was his next target. The boy was sure of it._

_His eyes widened, and a drop of blood trailed down his arm. He shook his head and muttered, "no!no!no-" over and over as he saw the bodies of the playful Yon and over-protective Kuchiku feeding the floor its meal of red. There was no hope, he would die here right now, those two were top Uchiha's. The only ones to best them in battle were his father and-_

_"Itachi!" He yelled, almost tripping in his hurry to the study, where he heard movement. Surely his Niisan would help him! No one could kill Itachi, and he would be okay if he was with his brother._

_Slamming open the door to his fathers study, his eyes spotted his black-clad brother in the center first and foremost. He was about to run to him when he saw what his brother had in his hands._

_"Tousan..."Sasuke whispered as the corpse bled out of the large gash in its throat. He spotted his mother behind him, over her heart a katana type slash. His shocked brain put two and two together and he whimpered as Itachi (_Those eyes! So cold..) _strode forward. _

_He smiled as smile with no emotions, just the act of lifting your lips up to reassure another. "Scared, Otouto?" The Mangekyo Sharingan flashed at him from their vicious (_they were always warm, fiery red with three tomoe) _vermilion depths. _

_Black._

_That's how HIS eyes used to always be around him._

_Parts of words as his world tilted and he fell, but stayed standing._

_"..Foolish little.."_

_His brother had..._

_"..hate me.."_

_Killed his parents..._

_"...cling to life.."_

_And he was gone, disappeared before the ANBU came. Sasuke didn't move, as he stared sightlessly at the dead bodies of those he loved. Something snapped. Something cried. Something died that day inside him._

_He opened his eyes, to resume his new life. Rebirth not of the womb, of a caring mother and into tender hands; but renewal from the blood that surrounded him in reeking pools, into a harsh reality that had no use for feelings, love or emotions. His soul was gone, the innocence shattered the way his heart was. In its place was something more fulfilling and more burdensome.._

_**Revenge.**_

Sakura sniffed, the twin trails of tears trailing down. She had almost forgot to breath as the shock, pain and betrayal swept through her, Sasuke's thoughts surrounding them letting them know how distraught he was. Opening her eyes, she ran to the Uchiha's wall, hoping to see if she could offer any advice, she had read some books on trauma. "Sasuke.."

She stopped in the middle and surveyed the scene.

Sasuke, during the memory had backed up to where Naruto's box joined with his and Sakura's was, smack dab in the middle. He bumped into the corner and slid down stiffly. Naruto saw the Sasuke that was hidden behind the arrogance, beneath the pride. He saw Sasuke for who he was. Who he never wanted anyone to be...

A reflection of himself.

He quivered and cradled his head between his hands and Naruto's heart clenched.

_"Why, Ojiisan? Why do they all hate me?"_

_"Its okay to cry, Naruto. I don't hate you.." Sandaime said embracing the fox-child who had yet to get out of the hospital. He could feel the robes getting wet, but could've cared less. "Let it all out, or it will consume you.."_

_None of Konoha's hospital heard the heart-wrenching sobs of a child who carried the burden of the unknown on his small shoulders._

"It's okay Sasuke, let it out or it will consume you..."Naruto whispered, sitting back to back with the Uchiha in the same position in his box. Sasuke said nothing covering the face that Konoha expectation forced into hiding at the very bottom of the soul. Letting it fester without light until it grew and grew, eventually swallowing the person Sasuke should have been, turning him into an avenger.

Angry, bitter tears streaked down his face and never made it past his chin as they soaked into his sleeves.

_Dull eyes, like broken gems swept across the bare room. No one would know he lived here, he was just another faceless Uchiha who hadn't even been worthy to kill. Just take the kunai that glinted liberatingly in his hand and in one simple slash be done with it all._

_No more pain._

_No more tears._

_No more lonely nights._

_He would be somewhere with his family._

_The normally dismal thought brought joy to his heart at the moment._

_He fell asleep, his hand stayed by the thought that Itachi should go with him to the place with their parent. Itachi, who carried him and listened to his rants about some orange wearing kid who broke his arm trying to climb like a ninja. Not the cold ANBU who had a sword through father's chest. Itachi would die and then Sasuke would follow, like always._

_The radio listening to itself play songs that went unheard._

Sakura looked at the scene that was unfolding before everyone's eyes, and a pain lanced through her heart. Sasuke, her dear Sasuke had gone to Naruto for comfort, even unconsciously.

This spoke volumes.

And those volumes crushed her heart, but also gave her hope; that if Sasuke could open his heart for one person, maybe he could do it for two.

She acknowledged the defeat of the battle that Naruto had won, and sportingly made no comment about it. She slid back down, her back to theirs and said nothing. There were no words to be said in the face of this. Sakura could only offer the warmth of another at your back. She looked over her shoulder and met blue eyes, she smiled, content in this delicate balance they have been making for years. The screens on all sides still played.

She smiled wider as the thoughts of rage at the Forest of Death that passed through Sasuke as he saw her battered form. Pure unbridled fury at how the only two constants (Kakashi wasn't in immediate danger) in his life that was full of loss, were being treated right before his eyes. He would not be helpless again as his world crumbled once more. Naruto was asleep **(****_I hope it's sleep. God, let it be sleep!_****)** and Sakura was bleeding and bruised **(****_Bastards dare lay a hand on what is mine! She better be alive or I'll have no mercy!_)**

All in all, Sakura concluded, this felt better than all the other times she had lost.

A wet coughing sound from Sasuke had the blond and pinkette smiling. He scrubbed his eyes furiously.

Kakashi smiled and asked lightly, "Something in your eyes Sasuke? They're all red!"

Sakura snickered as Sasuke glared at their teacher who was also sitting in the innermost corner of his space.

Kyuubi-sama nodded his head and stopped the flashes of memories at Sasuke's fight with Yoroi. The human boy had learned, and accepted what his team truly meant.

**"Two left. Wonder whose memories will be worse... for the worst memories will be last to play.." **He said, looking at Kakashi and Naruto respectively.

The walls flickered to the Academy and movement began.

His heart dropped, he knew this. It was what began all of the problems in his life.

That didn't stop him from looking at the bittersweet times, though.

**-owari-**

**Please tell me how you like this. :) The changes are necessary for the ending I've got. Took away the lyrics cause they were kind of...random and disrupted flow. Sakura and the other two...will find "redemption." after grueling penance. *hehehehe...* if I feel like it.**


	3. Chapter 3

EDIT 9/21/2010: Made Kakashi a little more involved, near the end is the most edited. Or you could enjoy and re-read it!

_"His father-"_

_"..Suicide…"_

_"-hides his shame…"_

_"...mission wa-"_

_Kakashi let all of their voices wash over him, like cleansing fire. His rage was a curious cooling sensation that ran through his veins. It was afternoon, the Academy hidden from his view as he crouched in between the branches. _

_Under his branch swung an empty and desolate looking swing, lonely as all the other children whispered beside it. Unnoticed the object of their barbs lay stonily still. _

_Through his mask, he breathed out his anger, the raging blood pounding in his eardrums. The sound a distant, but loud roar. _

_His dark eyes narrowed, while he stubbornly refused to acknowledge the tugging in his heart. Some small part of him, the emotional part, was crying softly at the vicious eagerness in which his supposed classmates spoke about him. He snorted bitterly; no 10-year-olds were going to insult him like that, not if he wished to survive in the blood soaked world of ninjas. After the Academy, his life was devoted to missions and nothing else._

_He would not make the same mistake as his father._

_He would bring back honor to the Hatake name._

Kakashi trembled.

His mind raced, the memories resurfacing. Oh god, the memories. Never ending torment to his heart, which he had shielded for so long. Until he met the team whose first impressions he hated. Just like **him.** Kyuubi-sama glanced at him, casually, wondering what it would take for him to crack. Kyuu-chan had regained her grip on Naruto, carefully prying him from the middle of the room and onto her lap. Sasuke raised a gloating eyebrow at her, _possessive much?_. She twitched.

_"Don't talk about Kakashi-san like that." The kids and Kakashi turned, still hidden still thinking dangerously gory thoughts. They sneered, faces stretching grotesquely over their grins. Eyes narrowed with hate, which they themselves did not know, that the hate disfigured their visage. Childhood ignorance treading dangerously onto biased malice._

_"What do you mean, Uchiha -san?" a girls voice, mocking, taunting in its sugar-sweetness. Proclaiming what she thought of Obito's standing in the Uchiha family. Which wasn't positive, to say the least._

_"His father did what was necessary, don't judge him for not killing his heart" Obito turned, not before glancing up at where Kakashi lay._

_"Stupid Obito" They sniggered "the most cowardly Uchiha." Kakashi ignored these remarks and focused intently on the retreating boy._

Kakashi saw his life laid out before him. Thousands of repressed memories flashed through the screen. He thought about covering their eyes.

However, he had seen their dark secrets. Their weaknesses. Now it was his turn to share his strengths, the weakest part of him.

Sasuke stared at the screen drinking in the sight of another Uchiha.

Sakura gave a small inhale, "He looks so much like…"she trailed off, glancing at the blonde. They had goggles, goofy grins… and rivals with the star pupil in their respective classes.

Sasuke rolled his eyes, it'd be just his luck that Naruto resembled an _Uchiha_.

Naruto sighed, _I wonder...what it would have been like if we'd known each other. _He felt the toll of lost opportunities slide through him. Regrets that were foolish but real._  
_

Longing, strong and deep rooted in to their soul, passing through them all "Naruto…" the kunoichi coughed, choking on the intensity of the emotion. It felt as if she were drowning, she wanted to breathe…so…bad...

It stopped as Kyuu-Chan cradled his head closer "your emotions are to strong for them, Naruto." slightly scolding him, the dead give away was the smugness in her voice.

The tense atmosphere sizzled underneath of the foremost thoughts. The bitter taste of irony. Both had females that struggled behind. Both had the deadlast and the prodigy.

Except that, Sasuke never left Sakura behind. It was one of the few lessons that Kakashi had drilled into them. The next being that 3 hours late is _always_ a good time to arrive.

They watched Obito run off, looking for Rin, while a young Kakashi was left to ponder the bonds between teammate and the present Rin had bestowed upon him.

Kakashi trembled. Kyuubi-sama seemed to read his mind. "We cannot change our past. Even in here where reality and fantasy are blended, it is impossible." moment passed and it seemed that Kakashi had saved the day.

Minute's later Sakura dry heaved and Sasuke clenched his fists, Kakashi's sorrow bearing down on them all. Naruto had a somber curiosity, as the bleeding eye of Obito, seemed to be crying red tears of Sharingan onto Kakashi' face.

The film like screen faded and it became black once again.

"It was his parting gift. " Kakashi whispered, clutching his covered eye. Team7 stood still, catching their breath through the torrent of emotions they had felt. "I have learned my lesson again and again, years before all of this." They looked at their teacher in a new light, habits and quirks being unfolded, scrutinized and understood. They only offered their silence, and Kakashi was grateful, he had relived this more times than he cared to admit while standing in front of the memorial stone.

"And now…" Kyuubi-sama said, turning the attention onto him "The final memories." he looked to his counterpart. Kyuu-Chan had placed her hands over Naruto's eyes, as if to shield them from the world's cruelties. She reluctantly took her hands away and Naruto stood with dull, sightless blue eyes, walked as if in a daze, toward the wall in his cage. Instead of stopping at the very solid wall, he passed through it, the white rippling ominously as he disappeared from their view.

Kyuubi-sama chuckled darkly as Kyuu-Chan looked desolate and guilty.

"Now, you shall all see how strong our Naruto is."

**-owari- **

Hope you like it!Next up is Naruto. *notevilplotting*

Hope the changes are improvements. See any mistakes? please tell me :)


	4. Chapter 4

Chapters 2 and 3 have been EDITED. Kind of extensively. Please reread for this to make sense.

THANK YOU to all who reviewed and kinda stuck with me through all this time. If you did I luv ya, If you didn't I understand ya. If you don't know what the hell I'm talking about, get a pamphlet.

Heh. This might get kinda confusing, although its really fast paced, so bear with me.

_memories_

_**Flashback within memories or rushed thoughts.**_

Present time in the Mind Room

Ready? Steady?GO!

* * *

It was too much.

Whatever the three ninja had expected was paltry in the face of this solid wall of pure _emotion_. Every single one lashed out as if to rend them to tiny pieces; rage, sorrow, pain, worry, weariness, agony, caution depression _envy __intimidation. Exhaustion to the point of giving up hope o fever healing_ **_ohgodohgodWHYWON'TTHE-_**

"PAIN STOP?"

Sakura's scream blended and clashed with Sasuke's and Kakashi's as they rode the wave Naruto's rough high pitched voice echoing through their very being. The lady from the corner store which always gave Sasuke a discount on tomatoes because she knew they were his favorite. The old man who always gave her a good morning no matter what. Comrades and acquaintances whose life he had saved countless times on the battlefield.

Through Naruto's eyes they transformed and mutated into grotesque monsters; parodies of the human body. Their mouths twisted into sneers, hands into claws, emotions blended into a veritable concoction made from the very essence of hell itself. They spit, she screamed, he beat and everything was just _**painpainthatwontevergoaway**_ and every scar and bruise and harsh words ripped his**(their)** skin physically and mentally.

_"Look at the deadlast! Loser, loser!"_

_An orphanage well kept, but not the best. Food scarce but only for for him. Everything was only for him. The hate, the taunts **(**__**howheHATEDthatword'deadlast'**__) the neglect and abuse. Naruto didn't know words, only ones that were thrown at him, which was the only interaction he had with others. But he couldn't put a name on this..this ANGER. It raged within him at first as he lashed out towards one child only to have that anger beaten back as five more children struck back. They stomped on that anger, that heat, that intensity until it morphed into something cold and smaller yet many times harder__**- **__that slugged through his veins slowly and all consuming in its wake. He was quiet now, through all the taunts, and wizened up enough to know that being in the middle of a street was no safer than being in a dark alley. _

_The random beating became organized in his mind as they centered around his birthday. He made sure to stop existing on those days. Nowhere that he could be seen was safe, unless in range of the sharp smell of tobacco and the roughened low voice of the Man._

_The Man brought gifts, a frog purse that Naruto played with outside in the forests and creeks by the Konoha wall when the Man would give him a map and a time limit every month as to when and where to sneak out of the tall looming walls which caged everything within him except that burning coolness encasing his veins. That which made everything sharper in the red fog of his vision as he was chased out by a ninja that _he had saved during a mission to Iwagakure.

Kakashi had his eyes closed and yet the images bled through to his eyelids. This place was dangerous in its lack of reason and rules. Human restraints had no say in this sanctum of the essence of the human soul. He cracked open an eyelid to see Sakura nursing her left arm that _was cracked while Naruto tried to climb a building like the chunnin had _while Sasuke was crying like a newborn babe as Naruto had when _he had been kicked out of the orphanage once and for all- now where would he go?_, it was too much as they were only a cup and Naruto's emotions were the vast lakes that populated Wave Country. It filled and surrounded them on all sides: left, right, up, down, inside and out - threatened to crack them from all angles, in all directions.

A pain in his heart that was familiar, but fresh as he remembered _the family that seemed so happy, the friends that were so innocent in their laughter with no one to glare at them for the joyful sound. _He was submerged back into the substance that was not 'Kakashi' but was wholly 'Naruto' and lost awareness of himself once more.

_Scrounging around a new restaurant for scraps of meat and unopened packages, as he had a nasty bout of sickness from an open package of vegetables that had been left outside. A soft noise, a small coo and he scrambled backwards in a desperate attempt to hide behind a garbage can. A girl slightly older than him with brown hair and chocolate soft eyes smiled tentatively while pushing a chipped bowl towards him. He eyed the bowl warily, steam and a mouthwatering scent emanating from it. _

_He couldn't remember when he had a warm meal and the nights got so _cold, _would it really hurt? A small voice responded that yes, it could hurt horribly haven't you been here all these years of your life? _

_The girl made no words, perhaps seeing the frantic frozen panic in his eyes, animalistic in its human form. Only soft coos and light hums as she pushed the bowl towards him and smiled brightly as he neared it and sniffed it before throwing caution away and snatching it from the floor. Sitting cross-legged on the dirty alley he licked it, while keeping sharp eyes on her to see if the strange girl made any suspicious movements. Flavor exploded on his tongue and the girl was forgotten as he chugged it, not caring of the steaming broth that blistered his tongue and scalded his lips. Without his knowing, tears slipped down mingling with the salty broth of the miso ramen, and suddenly it was hard to swallow around the burning lump in his throat and felt as if it were being crushed._

_Yet still he continued to lick the dregs because that taste was more than anything he had ever eaten, there was no comparison to be found in all of his life even better than _the time Itachi and him were invited over to a party hosted by the Hyuuga's as they spared no expense for the clan head's lavish birthday. Sasuke felt his mouth water as he could still taste the burst of salt and noodle, tears and blood as Naruto had _cut his tongue on the chipped bowl edge but that too was mixed in with all the emotions that he felt as he was held by thin bony arms and he found he didn't really care about anything including the silent rules that governed his life to make sure he kept breathing._

_Her shirt smelt like soap, broth and flour. It was slightly coarse and Naruto was currently getting boogers, tears and blood on it as he bawled his eyes out. A door opening and an older man with a resemblance to the girl holding him, he tensed and held on tighter to this girl that would disappear if he let go the littlest bit._

_A sigh. Strong arms picked both of them up and carried them to a warm inside. A voice rumbled and Naruto blushed at the feeling. This was the closest he was to anyone that didn't smell like old scrolls and ink and tobacco. Soothing voice as they climbed stairs leaving behind the closed restaurant. "Why don't you stay here for the night? Let's draw you up a bath now Blondie and Ayame will find you an old pair of shorts and a shirt for you to sleep in. You're smaller than her by a lot so it might be baggy..." _

_The soothing voice droned on and Naruto felt his head pound, his nose was stuffed and his throat hurt from his earlier crying but he didn't mind as he listening without hearing a word the man was saying, only the soft and calm tones of his voice._

_Later while sharing a room with the girl, Ayame, he would curl up in a fleece blanket feeling refreshed from his earlier bath that the man had personally given him, scrubbing all the filth and grime from his matted hair and small body as Ayame giggled and played with the bubbles that were floating around him. And Naruto did nothing but watch her curiously, fascinated with the emotions he had never seen on another's face before. He was in a light pink shirt with a bunny on it, powder blue pajama pants that were a bit big on him and they laid another futon out for him next to Ayame._

_The man kissed her forehead goodnight and Naruto looked away from what he felt was a private scene. Turning around he saw the man hesitate, hand mid way to him before patting his hair lightly and turning off the light. Naruto sat there and touched his hair imagining that he could still feel a foreign hand part the blond strands of his hair. He smiled a small smile and in the glow of the moon from the window could see Ayame smiling even brighter. He fell asleep cocooned in his borrowed blanket warmth suffused throughout his being; something tight in his chest loosened as he imagined that he heard a small pained voice choke out a 'Thank _God" Sakura sobbed as the pressure and tension eased around her heart. She had fallen to the ground completely and had enough strenght now to shakily sit and catch her breath. Tears caked her cheeks making her feel gross and gritty but she couldn't find the will to care. After so many nights sleeping in filthy places a little salt never hurt anybody.

She froze. _'That's not right...that-That's not me!' _She panicked seeing Sasuke slumped against the wall to his corner and Kakashi lying face down on the floor. She screamed for help as she felt herself lose contact with all that was 'Sakura'. Once more she was lost.

_"Kiss my ass fuckers!" Naruto laughed heartily, worry and anxiety weighed down his heart as true amusement stretched his grin. Those pathetic excuses for academy teachers had the gall to fail him and yet they couldn't even find and catch a dead last. His prank was a true stroke of genius._

_"Do you normally talk to yourself while hiding?" an amused voice murmured behind him. Naruto startled and whirled around, he hadn't even felt him! A brown haired man with a large scar spanning his face ear to ear; chocolate eyes like a younger Ayame laughed with mirth as they saw the paint splatters on his loud orange jumpsuit the Old Man Hokage gave him for New Years. Naruto instantly relaxed, exited beyond measure. He did it!_

_After meeting Old man Ichiraku and Ayame he decided that he was going about this whole "life" thing wrong. He found he couldn't remember anything before Ayame and Teuchi, only that he was a quiet boy who kept to himself in the playground as he watched a raven haired child sitting on the docks; or a lazy boy and a plump one play in the sandbox. But this time instead of slinking off quietly, he had taken his chances and scrounged around the newly opened restaurant's garbage. BAM! He was hit with a new friend and a warm place and a free meal once every month, not to mention a safe hiding place during his birthday. So, he had sat down and had gone about planning how to best garner the most attention of any kind. Good, bad and everything in between the two. If he attracted enough people's attention he could find maybe another friend who wouldn't look at him with anger._

_" You should have placed the blame on someone else y'know. Makes tracing all these pranks harder." Naruto grinned, these were the words of a master! "Who're you?"_

_"I'm a new sensei at the academy, Umino Iruka." He stretched his hand out and Naruto looked at it and him with wide eyes, before shaking it enthusiastically. "Uzumaki Naruto!" If the blond held on to his hand longer than necessary with a desperate edge to his strong grip, Iruka said nothing._

_"If you come back to the academy with me I'll treat you to lunch Uzumaki-san."_

_"Its Naruto. Just Naruto. And have you heard of a place called Ichiraku, Iruka-sensei?"_

_**o0o**  
_

_"Five bowls old man! Today is a good day!" He yelled as he brushed aside the hanging curtains from the entrance. Ayame laughed, "Why is that Naruto-kun?" Pride rushed through him as he thought about his first Genin paycheck in his pocket. Finally! He was using his own money, which he came about as no charity from Iruka or Old Man Hokage._

_"I've just gotten my paycheck, which was paid to me for my blood, sweat and tears!" He began to regale them with a fabulous story about the fierce tiger named Tora and how the wind seemed dead set against his quest to wrangle all the fallen leaves. They laughed with him and commented and made all the noises of a captivated audience as he relaxed. The tense atmosphere of team 7 behind him as jumped out of his seat, demonstrating how he had kept the tigress at bay._

_Someday, he thought to himself with a smile and a swell of hope **(wings of light fluttering softly through his soul)** he will sit here with his teammates and they will laugh with him as he told his stories. Sakura giggling beautifully as a blush darkened her cheeks, Sasuke smirking softly as he pretended not to listen to him while peering from the corner of his eye. Kakashi-sensei patting his head as he too laughed, warm like the first time he had eaten the food of the gods- miso ramen. He couldn't describe what the Old Man, Ichiraku and Ayame, and Iruka were to him. The only thing he knew was that he would do anything in his power and beyond to keep them safe and happy._

_**o0o**  
_

_During the trip to Wave, especially with the fight against Zabuza, Naruto couldn't keep his happiness at bay. They were finally acting as a team, the pressure of being in Konoha was gone and the Kyuubi had been calling him down in front of its cage for weeks now. Mostly to just sit in each other presence, awkward questions and silences developed but there was an overall feeling of gratitude. Naruto knew now what the small voice inside him who told him to hide or run whenever anyone was going to catch him in his pranks._

_Just because of that the Kyuubi was currently A-ok. At least a step above the Bastard. It was a tentative relationship, with Kyuubi's immesurable anger that sparked something hidden inside him and his own short temper._

_He fell asleep in a patch of grass that Kyuubi approved of, and awoke to the smell of blood, steel and crushed herbs. Warm eyes greeted him, cautious in their movements; Naruto smiled wide. Another one caught!_

_They began to talk, calm in each others presence; Naruto wouldn't want any one else as his friend, she radiated peace and tranquility with oneself._

_They moved from his ninja training to something called a "precious person" It was there that he found a name for these people he kept close to his heart. It was there that he found the source of his strength._

_"__When a person... has something important they want to protect... that's when they can become truly strong."_

_**o0o**  
_

_How could he continue to fight? This person he had decided to make into a friend from one conversation. This ninja who had the soul of an angel, in the role of a killer. How could he kill this pure being and not be cast into hell?_

_This person that killed his other precious person who died to save __**him**__. It was mind boggling and Naruto had never expected to be the recipient of such...love._

_But to kill so ruthlessly?_

_To Sasuke and Sakura and Kakashi-sensei this was a simple battle of killing the bad guys and getting the townspeople their lively hood back. It HURT in ways he hadn't known where possible when he saw a dimension to their opponents. Instead of a cold mask he saw fall to the ground, it was the warm eyes and kind voice, like Iruka on that building telling him the best way to get away with it. Or Ayame giving him a chipped bowl with Miso. Or Old Man Sandaime hugging him, smelling of scrolls and ink and tobacco. Instead of the Demon of the Mist he saw a jounin who took in a stray with eyes like his, pain calling out to pain in the hopes of finding a reason for being._

_"Can you understand? Not having a dream... not being needed by anyone... The pain of merely being alive."_

_He could! He wanted to shout, somewhere deep down the words struck a chord in him, close to his heart. He knew Haku saw pain reflected back in his eyes. But...he couldn't remember his childhood sparking this kind of pain...then again, of his childhood - he couldn't remember much of anything._

_"I realized the most painful thing... That in this world... my existence was not needed." It is as if your being was a mistake- _"It was never a mistake Naruto! Don't even think it!"Sakura sobbed-_and you realized that of the thousand people surrounding you, none of them know you exist, no one will mourn you as you pass away._

"I would." Sasuke breathed, Sakura's words snapping him back to the black room within their melded minds.

_And Haku was dead, Chidori through the chest and Naruto morbidly wondered how that felt. The Chidori and the feeling of having succeeded in protecting your precious people, unlike Naruto seemed to be able to do. He looked down at Sasuke's pale body, training sessions and missions together flashing through his mind. He choked and turned away in time to see Zabuza almost slice through Haku's corpse._

_Rage, it felt good and hot, thrumming through his body and loosening his tongue as he confessed of Haku's love. Tear falling as such a pure being in their world of blood and pain dying in such a way._

_I want to die like them, he realized eyes blurry as he watched the Demon of the Mist shed his own tears and avenge his fallen Haku. _

_**I want to die for the people which I protect.**_

"You will not die, we will not allow it Naruto." Kakashi mumbled, swiping off his headband to rub at his mismatched eye, the one throbbing viciously. Naruto's emotions weren't as turbulent now as they were before. This was because he didn't remember those early memories, he realized, seeing as Sasuke and Sakura were watching intently what they missed on that fateful fight on the bridge. Sasuke shuddered at the sight of his own deathly looking body.

_At their grave sites he thanked them. He sighed, they could have been friends. The phrase rang out in his head even as they waved bye to Inari and the townspeople. How clumsy and stupid he was, longing for friends when he had let one slip through his fingers. The thought sent a suspicious pricking through the corners of his eyes. _

_**We could have been friends.**_

_He didn't expect to see that kind of hurt again so soon. Looking into this red haired boy's eyes, rimmed in black which seemed to seep from the darkness of nights alone. Are there no stars in Suna, Gaara of the Sand? Why is there no light in your dark eyes? He wanted to ask, but from the way he glared at Naruto, he would hazard a guess that questions wouldn't be appreciated._

_He can't think of it any more as they rushed through the chunnin exams, Orochimaru- the very name makes his blood boil and Kyuu-chan and Kyuubi-sama agree that he is bad business. Naruto has learned to never doubt the instincts of a really old fox. _

_Naruto isn't as pure as Haku, he has little to no qualms about killing the Snake Sannin who bit Sasuke and turned him into an even moodier bastard. And Sakura, his breath caught as he stood straighter, pride as he saw her shortened hair and fierce stance. In that moment he was **so **proud to be her teammate, this fierce being of intelligence and instinct in its purest form. From bickering kid to one strong gennin looking out for those she has labeled hers._

Sakura cried, her own emotions of elation and self disgust washing through the remaining two male teammates of hers "I'll do it. More. I'll surpass everyone if only for you to see me in that way again Naruto." She sobbed, never has she seen herself in such a beautifully striking way, as Naruto has pictured her. Thoughts and speech were said outloud as the lines between their private thoughts blurred.

_Neji, who was caged in societies laws; if birds were content to sit in cages and sing, why do they have wings to take them far away?_

_He also had the strangest feeling that asking that question wouldn't be appreciated. Hinata, shy and timid had stood up to him, and had been viciously cut down without remorse. Didn't family mean anything anymore? He didn't want to believe that after all the hardwork and after standing up for what you believe in the only thing you would get in return is broken bones and bruises._

_He couldn't believe that._

_He was a dead last. Flunked the academy's test. Couldn't even make a single bunshin. This was a genius, breaking past his limitations and setting new ones for his branch family. And yet he was so bound up by this so called fate who he spun her web all around him to keep him struggling to be free._

_If only he could see that the way to untie himself to to cut the strings with his Byakugan. Why can't he see?_

_**o0o**_

_Still shaken after the encounter with Gaara in Lee's hospital bed Naruto wasn't stable enough to respond to Sasuke's sudden need for violence._

_He couldn't understand Sasuke's want for them to fight. But if it made his precious person happy then he'd give it._

_He would give it all._

_**o0o**_

_Chasing after Gaara he almost saw this coming. Jinchuuriki. Human sacrifices. His head hurts as he has flashes of his childhood, crying alone, sobbing well into the night as they all turn their backs on him. _

_"Monster."_

_No. Sacrifice. He saw that pain in Gaara, it was like a mirror image in a person he'd never met. Pain calls to pain searching together for their reason to continue to live as sacrifices._

_And again, he was forced to choose between this would be friend and his precious people. The hurt hadn't lessened._

_Voices in his head chime. Demon container as well, good chance of survival. Risk it. Haku had died, Gaara would not follow in his path. _

_He would swear it._

Sasuke felt as if could do anything as Naruto faced off against a giant demon determined to save **everyone**. There were no doubts and his limbs weighed nothing. There was no obstacle he wouldn't try to knock down for the sake of his precious people.

_Bam! _

He startled looking over at Sakura's corner. She flexed her hand again and concentrated before punching the her wall once again. Kakashi raised an impressed eyebrow, "That is Tsunade-sama's technique."

Sakura gave a cocky grin and Sasuke remembered that stance from Naruto's memories. "Yeah. I figured it out a while back, but I need some time to collect chakra around my fist." Kakashi hmmed and lightly walked forward to his wall in the center. Seconds later there was a Chidori roaring in his hand as he lined up the technique with Sakura's punch.

The two collided and the wall between each others corner dissapeared in a flicker of pink and green.

They turned to Sasuke's blue wall, flashing in defiance. He had a Chidori in hand already waiting. Sakura readied another punch and Kakashi his own Chidori.

Was this what Naruto felt when fighting for them?

_He crawled and could feel the pain of several broken bones as he made his way over to the fallen Jinchuuriki. He talked about everything he felt. "Why can I feel your pain?" Reflected. A mirror. Naruto tried his best to break it. He could see a young Gaara crying. There was no Iruka to help, no Ichiraku to give love. _

_He smiled while looking at him, 'you can be my precious person.'_

_**o0o**  
_

_They all gravitated towards him, these people with pain in their eyes._

_Lee who took what life gave him and surpassed everyone else only to have everything taken from him once more. But there is still a spark, a childish hope and Naruto will bring Tsunade back if only to see him out of that bed._

_Tsunade whose faith in life is gone. Only the shadows of her dead lover, brother and ninja squad remain._

_Gaara who seemed broken physically but was healing inside as his sibling gave him tentative smiles._

_Sakura, who is always left behind. Unable to fight because of blocks she has put on herself. Words are as sturdy as chains **why can't she see**?_

_Sasuke who finds that these "frivolous" emotions such as friendship are useless. He is growing frustrated at his apperant lack of progress. If only he could feel what Naruto feels when he was fighting for Sakura's smile, Kakashi's approval and Sasuke's respect._

CRASH.

They stood side by side throwing everything they had towards the red walls. The two Kyuubi's watching with unreadable expressions as they continued even after Sakura didn't have enough chakra, Kakashi couldn't make another Chidori and Sasuke couldn't hold up the Sharingan.

_"Sasuke!"_

_"Naruto!"_

_The waterfall roared behind them as they viciously fought; all the while Naruto struggled internally as he debated whether or not to lose. He began to need Kyuubi's chakra to keep himself and Sasuke alive. It hurt, like seeing Haku die again and again, to fight this seriously with Sasuke. One that he has sworn to protect on his blood. He has nothing but his word as a ninja. He will protect Sasuke even if the Sharingan user can't see that Orochimaru isn't what is best for him._

_As they charge up their respective Jutsu Naruto jumps forward as Sasuke does as well. Whatever is needed to keep his precious people happy, even if he must die._

_As the Chidori pierces frightningly close, so that's how Haku felt **(Cold Hot vying for control and there is only numbness in the pain****) **_Sakura gives a chocked gasps and falls, Sasuke mirrors her actions and Kakashi crumples down as well. All clutching their chest as they can't breath, tears spring to their eyes but there is only shocks of cold and hot, bodies twitching without their consent as pain racks and plays their bodies like an instrument. And in the midst of this pain a happiness like no other because even as Sasuke stuck a Chidori through his best friend's chest it was _okay because that total look of utter desolation on the Bastard's face says it all and he guesses he must have said the part about dying for Sasuke out loud because there is rain and warm tears on his face as Sasuke clutches him close and takes great shuddering sobs. Naruto smiles and coughs blood, content in the knowledge that Sasuke won't leave to go be a tool for someone who doesn't deserve the boy who loves tomatoes and knows that watering plants is Naruto's favorite hobby next to pranks or that Sakura loves to play trivia games and Kakashi hates everything fried or sweet but will eat it if someone else pays for it._

_He passes out._

_**o0o**  
_

_It was morning and his team met in an hour. Meaning that they were going to meet two hours ago but they were going to be there when Kakashi was there and not earlier._

_A little girl with a flower passed him, she carried it so regally and carefully he had to follow, to sate his curiosity and saw as she headed to the shinobi memorial. Setting it down she bowed and began to talk._

_"Hello mother, Father. How are you this morning?" On and on she continued before bowing once more and saying "Goodbye, I miss you." Tears dripped steadily down her cheeks as she walked by his hiding place._

_Naruto stays. Before walking up and sighing, sitting with his back to the stone. "Hello Old man." He couldn't get much farther, as the thought of the flower the girl had pricked something in him. _

_"Who will mourn for me?" __he thought out loud, the idea niggling in the back of his head. Suddenly he felt so crushingly alone,Sasuke had Sakura and all of the village. Sakura had Sasuke. Kakashi had Sasuke. Tsunade had Sakura. Iruka had Konohamaru. Konohamaru had Asuma. Everyone else had their teammates or family._

_Who did he have? He wished selfishly for Sarutobi, always with his wisdom and words of advice._

_**"Look Naruto, look at these two words for me won't you?" Glumly Naruto looked and recognized the words from his academy teachings. "What do they say?"**_

_**"Demon and Naruto"**_

_**"Very good. Do they look the same?" **_

_**Naruto scoffed, this was easy, he was 12 for god's sake! "NO. They don't. I don't get where you're going with thi-"**_

_**"Do they sound the same?"**_

_**Naruto scowled, sick of this already "no."**_

_**"Don't you suppose that if these two words were meant to be the same there would only be one?" Naruto saw where this was headed, just because he was still kind of in shock from the Mizuki Incident doesn't mean he's got Identity crisis right? Besides the fact that he had been moping around Old Man Hokage's office for the last couple days.**_

_**"What about being synonyms?" Ha. Take that old man!**_

_**"They don't mean the same either. To me a Demon is a monster with no care for human life and morals. And a Naruto means someone who thinks all life is precious and should be protected, he has a strong will of fire, and the makings of a great ninja." He said confidently, going over to sit next to Naruto who was suspiciously scrubbing his eyes and hunching his shoulders. He sighed, some things never changed. **_

_**Naruto would never tell him how his speech struck a chord deep within him, the first time anyone had said what he had dared to dream with such conviction. Such faith. It stung, this sharp happiness blindsided him completely.  
**_

_**"Shows what you know old man, you must be as blind as a bat!" Naruto hiccuped, voice trembling as Sarutobi hugged him as if he were a child once more.**_

_**He chuckled, "Yes Naruto I must be. But even bats find their way in the dark so I'm not as blind as I may seem."**_

_"You were always so sure in your knowledge old man. But here I am, keeping my people safe and happy, but I don't see where that will get me a flower for my grave. Do you?"_

_Silence answered him._

_Naruto sighed heavily, before walking dejectedly towards Team 7's training grounds. "Yeah, I thought so too."_

_**o0o**  
_

_Sigh._That was exhausting and my fingers are cramping. I hope I got the message through tho :) I think this might be the longest chapter I've ever written.

Yes, I did skip around through many of the memories; but it would just take an unnecessary amount of time, I just needed the core events. Which, coincidentally are the arcs : Wave, Chunnin exam was kinda glossed over, and the Sasuke Retrieval.

How was it? too rushed? I hope it made you cry (In the good way of course).

Next up: The aftermath and Fallout.


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